Among the highest ranking judges found in the United States are Superior Court judges. Each state typically has at least one Superior Court judge. These judges are usually voted in by the citizens of each state during the main elections.

While some states' judges do not carry the title “Superior Court,” they are known under different names which carry the same powers. In Pennsylvania and Ohio, these courts are known as the Courts of Common Pleas. Michigan and Oregon has Circuit Courts while Louisiana and Hawaii have District Courts. New York has a Supreme Court. All 50 states and the District of Columbia carry a court which has the power to hear and decide any case which is not designated to be heard in some other courts.

Most states have split their Superior Courts system up into several different divisions in order to help ease the case loads. The states also divide their states up in different districts. Depending on the state's districts and subdivisions, each state's Superior Court system could house as few as a few dozen Superior Court judges to over 100 Superior Court judges. The Superior Court of New Jersey splits their courts up into three different divisions: Appellate, Law, and Chancery Divisions. Alaska has four separate divisions with a grand total of 40 judges presiding over the Alaskan Superior Court.

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Depending on the state, Superior Court judges hear many different kinds of cases. In New York State, the judges of the Supreme Court hear the lowest forms of cases, typically heard in smaller courts in most other states. North Carolina’s senior resident on the Superior Court appoints people to fill the position in the clerk’s office if the position becomes vacant. In rare circumstances, the senior resident may also form a three-judge panel for redistricting cases.

Delaware originally had the Superior Court hear civil cases, but since their judicial system reorganization in 1951 they can now hear criminal cases which were formerly preformed by the Court of General Sessions and Court of Oyer and Terminer. The Court of Oyer and Terminer is a commission which determines all treasons, felonies and misdemeanors. Once this was dissolved in 1951, the Superior Court judge will hear the bulk of the criminal court cases. Like the majority of the United States, the Superior Court has the power to examine misdeeds from justices of the peace, sheriffs, coroners, and clerks. Superior Courts are also involved with delinquent tax cases.

The United States is not the only place where Superior Court judges exist. Luxembourg is home to a Superior Court judge. The judge of the Superior Court in Luxembourg is appointed by the Grand Duke. Upon receiving the title, the new judge is appointed the position judge on the Superior Court for life. The province of Quebec in Canada also institutes a Superior Court judge system. The judges in the province of Quebec are split into two divisions, Montreal and Quebec City, consisting of 40 judges total.

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